Bright Lights, Big City
by slincoln
Summary: Kara Danvers's first big assignment for CatCo Magazine takes her to Gotham City, but are the locals prepared for her?


BRIGHT LIGHTS BIG CITY

by Sam Lincoln

Disclaimer: All the characters contained in this story are the proper of DC Comics, and Warner Brothers. No infringement is intended.

Summary: Kara Danvers's first big assignment for CatCo Magazine takes her to Gotham City, but are the locals ready for her?

Spoilers: This takes place after the Heroes vs Aliens crossover.

* * *

"Danvers!" Snapper Carr, the news editor of CatCo Magazine shouted from his office.

Kara Danvers crept into Snapper's office holding a pad and pen in front of her like a shield. "Yes boss?"

"Get in here." Snapper motioned for Kara to enter without looking up from the copy he was reading. "I have an assignment for you."

"An assignment?" Kara asked as she shuffled in front of Snapper's desk.

Snapper pushed his glasses up and looked at Kara. "Yes, an assignment, it's something reporters do. You would know that if you had ever bothered to take a journalism class in your life." He stood up from his desk and glared at Kara.

Kara adjusted her glasses and squared her shoulders. "Yes boss, of course. I meant, what's the assignment?"

Snapper reached down and picked up a folder off of his desk. "Wayne Enterprises is holding an announcement gala for a new philanthropic initiative. I want you there to cover it." He tossed the folder at Kara who managed to catch it without dropping her pad or pen.

"Don't we have already have a society writer?" Kara asked. She opened the folder and read through it.

"We do, and at this moment her name is Kara Danvers." Snapper placed both his hands on the desk and leaned folder. "What's the matter Danvers? Do you think this assignment is beneath you?"

Kara shook her head. "No sir, of course not, it's just," Kara took a deep breath before continuing. "When I took this job I wanted to help people, not say who Bruce Wayne's arm candy for the night is."

"You want to make a difference, that's great, but you have to prove to me that you have the chops to tell the big stories, and so far." Snapper shook his head. "I have not been impressed Danvers. This is how you prove to me that you have those chops. Go to Gotham, and ask Bruce Wayne why he thinks this new white elephant can turn Gotham into something other than a crime-riddled playground for costumed freaks." He pounded on the top of his desk. "And don't bother coming back until you get that quote!"

Kara bobbed her head up and down. "Yes boss, right away." She turned and fled out of the office. She paused in the doorway then turned around. "Wait, this is my first assignment outside of National City." A bright smile started to spread across Kara's face.

"Go!" Snapper yelled and Kara beat a hasty retreat.

"I can't believe it!" Kara said to Alex and Winn as they all stood in the DEO command center. Kara was dressed in her Supergirl costume. "Gotham City, this is so exciting!" She clapped her hands together.

"I know Kara, you've said so five times already since you got here," Alex said.

"Yeah, we get it, you're excited about going to Gotham, for some reason," Winn said as he walked past the sisters holding a cup of coffee.

Kara turned to face Winn. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"Just that Gotham is a dangerous hole." Winn sat down at his desk and fiddled with a pencil.

"Oh come on, it's not that bad," Kara said.

"Oh yes, yes it is. Have you seen how many costumed criminals they are there?" Winn asked.

"Have you seen how many there are here, or in Metropolis?" Kara asked. She placed her hands on her hips and glared at Winn.

"But National City has you, Metropolis has Superman," Winn said. He pointed at Kara. "Gotham has, well, him."

"Gotham City is no more dangerous than anywhere else," J'onn said as he walked into the command center. "You just have to know who not to annoy. So you're looking forward to your trip?"

Kara bobbed up and down on her toes. "Yep, my first big assignment!"

"Do you plan to bring your cape along with you?"

Kara took a step back from J'onn. "Of course, why wouldn't I?"

"Normally I wouldn't say anything, hell I would encourage you to, but Gotham is a special case," J'onn said. He folded his arms across his chest.

"Special case?"

"I'll be blunt, superheroes are not welcome in Gotham, not outside ones at least."

"J'onn I'm not hiding my powers if that's what you're telling me. If people need my help, I will help them." Kara glared at the director of the DEO as she mimicked his pose.

J'onn held up his hands. "That wasn't what I meant. I just wanted to give you ample warning about to to expect if Supergirl makes an appearance over the skies of Gotham, and it will not be a warm welcome."

Kara pressed her lips together. "Did you have any other pieces of advice for me sir?"

J'onn sighed. "I know you feel like you're being singled out, but trust me, that is not the case. If your cousin was here he'd tell you the same thing. Even he isn't welcome in Gotham, if you can believe that."

"Thank-you for telling me sir. Now if you don't mind I have to go pack for my big assignment." She spun on her heels and walked out of the command center.

"Kara do you want to talk about..." Alex followed Kara out of the command center but she flew off before Alex could catch up to her. Alex sighed, then pulled out her phone. "Talk to me Kara," she said into the phone as she walked into a side room.

"Talk about what?" Kara asked as she flew across the city.

"You just flew off without saying anything, you never do that. Were you that bothered by J'onn telling you not to be Supergirl in Gotham?"

Kara landed in her apartment. "No, that's not it at all, I have to pack for my big trip."

"Kara, you're just there for one night, you don't even have to spend the night. You can fly home after the gala."

"I could, but that would be highly inconvenient. I'd have to explain to Snapper why I'm not expensing plane tickets or a hotel room. I thought I was supposed to be maintaining a secret identity." She walked into her room and pulled a seldom used carry-on bag out of her closet.

"You're mad Kara, talk to me," Alex said. She massaged the bridge of her nose.

"It's just so unfair, you know? Why can't I be Supergirl outside of National City? Am I not good enough at being a superhero?"

"Kara, this is Batman we're talking about. I don't know much about him, but doesn't he strike you as the sort of person who is not a people person."

Kara pulled a dress off of a hanger and took a deep breath. "I suppose so."

"Take your cousin's advice, go to Gotham, be Kara Danvers for a change. Work on that journalism career you claim is so important to you. Leave Supergirl in National City for a night," Alex said. She drummed her fingers on the desktop next to her.

"I'm taking the costume with me," Kara said after a long pause. "You never know what might happen."

Alex laughed. "That's fair enough, have a safe trip Kara."

"You'll call me if there's like an alien invasion or something right?"

"I'm sure if something happens that J'onn, Winn, myself and the rest of the DEO can't handle you'll already know about it. We'll make sure National City is still standing when you get back."

"I'll hold you to that," Kara said.

"Finish packed and worry about how you'll get a quote out of Bruce Wayne instead," Alex said.

"Oh why did you have to remind me of that?" Kara asked.

"Because that's what big sisters do."

"Okay love you Alex, bye."

"Love you too," Alex said. Kara hung up her phone and fell backward onto her bed.

* * *

The next night Kara walked into the ballroom of the Grand Gotham Plaza Hotel and into a throng of well dressed people. Kara, on advice from Clark, was wearing a well-tailored, but not extravagant, jacket and skirt. She nervously adjusted the press credentials dangling from a lanyard around her neck.

"Excuse me, miss?" Kara heard a deep voice behind her say. She turned around and saw an overly muscled man wearing an ill-fitting suit and holding a clipboard approach her. A quick check with her x-ray vision confirmed that he had a firearm holstered in the small of his back. "This function isn't open to the public, I'll have to see you invitation."

Kara held up the press pass suspended by the lanyard. "I'm Kara Danvers. I'm here on behalf of CatCo magazine."

The security guard stared at the pass and then his clipboard for a long moment before shrugging his shoulders. "Don't see why Mr. Wayne would include a gossip rag like CatCo at this event, but you're on the list."

Kara clenched her hands at her sides. "CatCo magazine is not a gossip rag! Well, not just."

"That's the only reason my wife buys it," the guard said. "Sorry for hassling you, but you know how Gotham is, can't be too careful."

Kara forced a smile onto her face. "No I suppose you can't. For all you knew I could've been the minion of some crazy super villain."

"A mousy little thing like you? Nah," the guard said with a laugh. "Enjoy your evening ma'am."

Kara fought back the urge to singe the guard with her heat vision. Instead she focused on the lavishly appointed ballroom. Her eyes grew wide when she saw a waiter walk past holding a large tray loaded down with hors d'oeuvres. "Excuse me, those are included right?" Kara asked the waiter as she pointed at the tray. "The invitation wasn't exactly clear and I don't know if my per diem will cover all of this."

The waiter shifted the tray so Kara could reach it. "Of course, all food and drink this evening is complements of Mr. Wayne."

"That's very generous of him." Kara grabbed puff pastries off of the tray and started to shove them in her mouth. "And they're so good too."

"Apparently so," the waiter said with a chuckle.

Kara stopped eating and blushed. "Oh I'm sorry, you must think I'm a pig. I, er, skipped lunch today to make my flight."

"In that case might I recommend the buffet?" The waiter said. He pointed to a long table ringed with party-goers. "You can also help yourself to a plate."

Kara looked down at her hands filled with puff pastry. "Right, a plate, that's a good idea. Thanks for the tip." She turned and walked away form the waiter.

"What a delightful young woman," the waiter said before returning to the kitchen to restock his tray.

Kara loaded up a plate with finger food and then made her way through the crowd towards the stage at the other end of the room. She craned her neck as she looked around to catch a glimpse of Bruce Wayne. The jazz quartet playing on the stage stopped and everyone else in the room turned their attention to the stage and Lucious Fox stepped in front of the microphone.

"Good evening everyone, as you might have noticed I am not Bruce Wayne." The crowd chuckled dutifully. "Unfortunately Bruce was called out of town to attend to unexpected Wayne Enterprise business. He sends his regrets and thanks all you for coming to this important event, and your support for this vital cause."

Quiet murmurs of discontent rumbled through the crowd at Fox's announcement. He held up his hands to quiet the crowd. "On behalf of Bruce Wayne and Wayne Enterprises, I am pleased to announce a new strategic initiative to revitalize blighted neighborhoods in Gotham City."

"We've heard this song and dance before Fox," a reporter in a rumpled suit called out from the crowd. Kara set her plate down on a nearby table and pulled her phone out of a jacket pocket. She fumbled with the controls, but managed to turn on the recorder before Fox replied.

"I know we've been talking about the revitalization of Gotham for years and have spent tens of millions of dollars with little progress to show for it. But I am not a quitter, and neither is Bruce Wayne." Fox reached into the pocket of his dinner jacket and withdrew a remote control. "That is why starting tomorrow Wayne Enterprises will not be revitalizing Gotham, but rebuilding it. Making it what it once was." He pushed a button on the remote. A screen behind Fox flared to life and displayed an artist's rendering of a bustling city street. "Instead of forcing a vision of what Gotham should be, we are going to allow it to become what it wants to be. We will clean up the streets. Repair everything that needs repairing and then let the neighborhoods flourish on their own."

"Don't you think that's a little optimistic?" A voice in the crowd asked.

"Not at all, the problem in the past has always been trying to enforce a vision onto the city through planned communities. The people of Gotham are many things, but receptive to being told how to live is not one of them." The crowd chuckled. "Mr. Wayne and myself believe this is the best option available to us and I am excited to put our plan into action." The crowd burst into applause. Fox held up his hands again to quiet them. "But I've already taken up enough of your time. For now enjoy the food and the music, and to a better Gotham!" He held up a glass of champaign. The crowd repeated the toast and Fox stepped off the stage.

"Mr. Fox, Mr. Fox!" Kara said as she gently elbowed her way through the crowd. "Kara Danvers, CatCo Magazine, Mr. Fox, if I could have a moment of your time."

Fox looked over at Kara then smiled. "Certainly Ms. Danvers, Wayne Enterprises always has time for our friends at CatCo Magazine. How is Ms. Grant?"

"Last I knew, still traveling the world," Kara said.

"Ah yes, I heard about that. Cat is lucky she has such a good organization in place to allow her to go off and find herself again."

"Are you saying Wayne Enterprises doesn't have the same quality of organization?" Kara asked.

Fox chuckled. "Ms. Danvers, I am that organization."

"So Bruce Wayne is abandoning his responsibilities to his company?"

"Don't misquote me, Bruce does a lot of good work around the world, and I am proud to be in a position to help him do that." He cocked his head to one side. "But I can see you don't agree."

Kara took a deep breath. "I think if Mr. Wayne felt as strongly about your new initiative as you claim he does, he would be here to introduce it himself." She straightened her glasses. "Like you said, it is an important cause."

"I can assure you that Mr. Wayne very much wanted to be here for tonight's event."

"But a business emergency detained him. Yes, I remember you saying that. Could I ask what that emergency was?"

"No you may not, business confidentiality, I'm sure you understand. Did you have any other questions for me?"

"Do you know when Mr. Wayne will be back? I have some questions for him."

Fox chuckled. "You and every other reporter in this city Ms. Danvers, Bruce Wayne rarely grants interviews, why should he make an exception for you?"

"Because I believe this is a worthy cause and the people of this city might buy into it if they heard about it first hand from their most prominent citizen, and not his mouthpiece, er, no offense Mr. Fox."

"None taken, Ms. Danvers, and I see your point. I'll talk it over with Mr. Wayne and we will be in touch."

"And when you talk to Mr. Wayne, could you also ask him one other question for me?" Kara asked. She straightened her glasses before continuing. "Could you ask him why he thinks Wayne Enterprises is the only company capable of helping Gotham? There is a whole world out there that would love to help the people of this city, but they keep getting rebuffed.

Lucious smiled then nodded his head. "I'll be sure to ask him exactly that."

"Thank-you very much Mr. Fox, you have no idea how much this means to me." Kara reached out and started to pump Fox's hand up and down.

Lucious pulled his hand free from Kara's grasp. "A good idea is a good idea. We just have to hope Mr. Wayne thinks so too, but I have a feeling he will. You are his type of reporter after all."

"Intrepid?"

"Pretty. Enjoy yourself tonight Ms. Danvers, and please make full use of the bar." He gave Kara's hand a final shake then walked over to the next reporter who caught his attention.

Kara sighed and started to walk back to where she left her plate when her enhanced hearing picked up the sound of an alarm going off somewhere in the city. "Easy Kara, you promised Kal you'd leave the crime fighting to Batman," she said to herself and retrieved her plate. She sighed when the siren did not stop. Kara pulled out her cellphone and dialed Winn's number.

"Hi Kara, how's it going in Gotham?" Winn asked. He spun around in his chair at the DEO command center so he wasn't facing his computer.

"Great, it's going great. Say Winn, could you do me a favor?"

Winn looked around the DEO command center. "This isn't going to get me in trouble is it?"

"No I'm not going to get you in trouble. I just need you to hack into the Gotham Police and tell me what this alarm I'm hearing is."

"Kara, remember what J'onn told you," Winn said.

"Yes, I remember. I'm not going to do anything. I just want to know if anyone is in danger."

"You promise me you won't use this information to break your promise to your the director?"

Kara walked out of the ballroom and onto a balcony that overlooked the city. "Winn if you do not tell me what's going on I will fly over there and see for myself."

"Okay, okay, you win." Winn spun around in his chair and started to type on his keyboard. "Alright there is currently a bank robbery underway at the First Gotham Bank. According to 911 dispatch Killer Croc is tearing up the bank. GCPD is on the scene, but they have orders to not to engage because, you know, giant raging crocodile man and hostages."

Kara stared out across the city and took off her glasses. "Okay, thank-you Winn."

"Kara, wait, I know that voice. You're not about to whoosh over there are you?"

"If I don't answer your question then you aren't complicit."

"Damnit Kara," Winn said.

"I'm hanging up now. Tell Alex I won't answer her call," Kara said. She looked around to see if anyone was watching her before she slipped over the railing. An instant later she was rocketing off in the direction of the First Gotham Bank dressed as Supergirl.

The radio in her ear chirped and Kara took a deep breath before activating it. "Now is not a good time Alex."

"We talked about this and you agreed not to be Supergirl in Gotham," Alex said. She stood in front of a large display showing her a satellite image of the city.

"I know that, but I can't sit around and do nothing when there's a chance people might get hurt. And if Batman doesn't like it, tough."

Alex hung her head and sighed. "Okay Kara, have it your way. Killer Croc is still at the bank. If you hurry you can catch him."

"Oh my god, Kara is about to fight Killer Croc, this is so cool," Winn said.

"Quiet Winn, I'm mad at you as well," Alex said.

"Yes ma'am I am shutting up now," Winn said before returning his attention back to his workstation.

"Don't worry, I'll be in and out before anyone knows I'm here," Kara said. She flew over the bank at high speed. She could see a ring of armed police around the bank entrance. Kara banked hard and flew through the bank doors. She pulled up for a landing in the center of the lobby. Kara placed her hands on her hips as she surveyed the scene. A pair of guards sat tied up in one corner of the room. Standing next to the bank vault, with a large sack of money slung over his shoulder, was Killer Croc.

"Okay Croc, put down the money and turn yourself in. This won't end well for you, and there's no sense in putting these people at risk."

Croc's eyes bulged open. "Supergirl? But this ain't National City."

Kara shrugged her shoulders. "I was flying by and thought I might drop in to lend a hand." She settled into a sparring pose. "Now are you going to surrender, or do I have to make you?"

The relative quiet of the night outside the bank was shattered when Kara came crashing through the bank doors. She bounced down the steps and came to a stop in front of the police barricade.

"Supergirl!" Detective Rene Montoya said as she ran out from behind the barricade and knelt next to Kara. "Are you all right?"

"I'm fine, I'm fine," Kara said as she dusted off her sleeves. "He just sucker punched me is all. Won't happen again."

Montoya smiled. "I'm glad you're here. Always wanted to see one a Kryptonian."

"Always happy to oblige a fan. One Croc coming right up." Kara tensed, then flew back into the back to find no sign of Croc anywhere.

"He went out the back," one of the tied up security guards said.

Kara nodded her thanks and dashed out the rear of the building. She saw Croc running towards a manhole cover with the bag of money still slung over his shoulder. She focused her heat vision and burned the strap he was holding the bag. Croc turned when he felt the bag slip out of his grasp and his eyes again widened in shock as he saw Kara speeding at him with her fist drawn back.

A glint of purple out of the corner of her eye was Kara's only warning before she felt something crash into her just short of Croc. The force of the impact threw Kara off target and she landed against a nearby dumpster, crumpling the sheet metal. By the time Kara picked herself up off the ground Killer Croc was nowhere to be found.

"What are you doing here?" A gruff, but feminine voice asked from behind Kara.

"Oh wow," Kara said as she turned around. "I have to admit, part of me hoping I'd get the chance to meet you Batgirl." She ran over to where Barbara Gordon was standing. "Can I just say, I love your costume. The clasps on the cape are inspired. My friend Cisco would love to talk to you I'm sure."

"What on earth were you doing?" Barbara yelled. "I had Killer Croc and you just let him go!"

Kara took a step back from Batgirl then gathered herself. "What was I doing? What were you doing? I was about to punch his lights out until you came swinging along and blundered into me."

"At least I'm in the city I'm supposed to be in." Barbara said. "Isn't there some cat stuck in a tree in National City for you to save?"

Kara placed her hands on her hips and glared at Batgirl. "Excuse me for trying to help out. I just happened to be nearby and with this hearing it's not like I can just ignore police sirens." Kara's shoulders sagged. "I'm sorry. I was told not to do this, but I can't sit on my hands and do nothing when people need help. Plus, well, it's not that I'm bored with stopping bad guys in National City. I just..."

"Wanted to see what it was like being a big time superhero who goes to other cities and has team ups?" Barbara asked in a much less harsh voice.

"Yes, exactly that!" Kara said. "Not that I haven't been on superhero team-ups before, because I totally have, and not just my cousin either. The other superheroes were all from another universe though so you wouldn't have heard of them." Barbara cocked her head to one side and stared at Kara. "Okay, that sounded way less crazy in my head," Kara said.

Barbara shrugged. "You're an alien, impossible is already on the menu. If you say there are other universes out there who am I to say you're wrong? Anyway, since you are the reason I didn't catch Croc I suppose you could assist me in tracking him down again."

"You will? That's great, you won't regret it!" Kara sped over to Batgirl and pulled her in for a hug.

Barbara felt the armored panels in her jacket start to buckle. "Would you mind loosening your grip a little? I'm having a hard time breathing."

"Oh right, sorry, you'd think I'd have learned that lesson by now," Kara said as she let go of Batgirl.

"It's okay, you're excitable, I can see that," Barbara said. She massaged her sides to soothe the pain.

"So what's our first move?" Kara asked.

"First we return the money you so thoughtfully kept Croc from getting away with."

"Was that a compliment?" Kara asked Bargirl. A smile started to cross her lips.

"It was," Barbara said. "Even the biggest klutz is occasionally runs into a bit of good luck."

"Kara, Kara, are you okay?" Alex asked over the radio.

Kara reached up and activated the transmitter in her ear. "I'm fine. Killer Croc got away, but guess who I just met?"

Alex sighed then looked down at her shoes. "I don't know, Batman?"

"No, even better, Batgirl!"

Winn stood up from his workstation and walked over to where Alex was standing. "Did she just say Batgirl?" He toggled the microphone on his headset. "Ka...Supergirl, did you just say Batgirl?"

Alex rolled her eyes. "Don't tell me, you have a thing for Batgirl."

"I mean sure, who doesn't? That costume is genius. Not that I couldn't make a few improvements."

"I'm turning you guys off now," Kara said as she reached up to switch off her radio.

"Play nice with your new friend," Alex said. "Call us if you need anything. Love you."

"Yep, I'll be in touch," Kara said before switching off the radio.

"Who was that?" Batgirl asked.

"That, that was my support team back in National City. They were just checking in, but they're cool, we're all cool. Let's go catch a crocodile man."

"Supergirl are you back here?" Detective Montoya called out.

Kara turned to face the direction she heard Montoya's voice coming from. "I'm back here detective with," Kara swiveled her head to look at Batgirl, but she had already vanished. "Cool," Kara said to herself. She turned around in time to see Detective Montoya lead a squad of police down the alleyway. Kara squared her shoulders and placed her hands on her hips as the police approached her.

"Did you catch Croc?"

"I, er, no," Kara said. She slipped out of her pose. "But I did keep him from getting away with his score." She pointed at the satchel full of money lying on the ground.

Montoya scratched the side of her head. "That's better than nothing I guess. How did he get away from you?"

"He, uh, threw a rock at my head," Kara said. "It was, er, a big rock."

Montoya stared at Kara then around at the boulder-free alley. "Right, well, my team can handle things from here. Thanks for your help."

"Always happy to assist the police," Kara said. She threw a salute toward Montoya then flew away from the alley and scanned the nearby streets with her x-ray vision to find where Batgirl was hiding. Her radio chirped in her ear. Kara frowned and reached up to turn on the radio. "Alex, now is not a good time."

"I'm not Alex," Batgirl said.

"How are you on this line?" Kara asked. "Its super encrypted."

"I'm Batgirl, use your imagination," Barbara said. "Were you serious about helping me?"

"Of course I was serious about that, why would you think I wasn't?"

"Because you are not a very serious hero," Barbara said. "Flying around National City, rescuing cats from trees and the like."

"You are obsessed with cats in trees," Kara said. "Besides, ask anyone who knows me, I'm serious." She banked and continued her search of Gotham's rooftops. "I stopped Non and Myriad after all."

"Perhaps, but you let Croc blindside you like a rank amateur."

"That was a lucky shot." Kara spotted Batgirl hunched behind a parapet on a rooftop several blocks from her. Kara increased her speed and flew over to where Batgirl was hiding.

As Kara approached Batgirl she spun out of her hiding spot and threw a batarang at Kara. She tried to dodge it, but the batarang exploded to reveal a net that wrapped around her. The surprise of being caught in the wire netting staggered Kara and she started to fall out of the sky. A quick flex of her muscles snapped the wire mesh binding her. She landed on the roof in front of Batgirl.

"Have any other tricks you want to try on me?" Kara asked. She took a step closer to Batgirl.

"Not at the moment," Barbara said. Her hand inched closer to her utility belt, but she drew it back.

"So what's the first step in finding Killer Croc?" Kara asked. "I can't scan the sewers with my x-ray vision because there are too many lead pipes down there, and I'm assuming you don't want to wait for him to try and rob another bank."

Batgirl withdrew her grapple gun. "I have an idea, follow me." She fired the gun and swung off the building's roof.

"That was so cool!" Kara said to herself. "Okay, keep it together Kara." She lifted off and followed Batgirl down to street level. "That is a really cool motorcycle," Kara said when she saw Batgirl get on a purple, customized bike.

"Not all of us have the power of flight," Barbara said. She pulled a helmet on over her cowl.

"Isn't that uncomfortable?" Kara asked. "You know, with the ears..." She pointed at her own head in the same location where the bat ears on Barbara's costume were. Her voice trailed off when she saw the glare Batgirl was giving her. "Right, so where are we going? Batman's secret lair?"

"What makes you think that's where we're going?"

"Because I'm a fellow superhero, and that's what superheroes do when they team up. Like when I was on the other Earth I visited the hideouts of both the Flash and the Green Arrow." She smiled at Batgirl.

"I have no idea who you are talking about," Barbara said. "Besides, it's not my place to let you into Batman's property. He's the only person who gets to say who can visit the Batcave."

"Wait, he calls it the Batcave?" Kara asked. "That is amazing."

Barbara rolled her eyes. "The name is hardly the point."

"I know, but still, the Batcave. I thought Fortress of Solitude sounded silly."

"We are talking about a man who named his car the Batmobile," Barbara said.

"So is that the Batcycle?" Kara asked.

"No."

"Okay, just checking. If we aren't visiting the Batcave - which I totally want to do now by the way - where are we going?"

Barbara flipped down the visor of her helmet. "I have my own hideout you know." She revved the bike's engine and drove off with Kara flying close behind.

* * *

Barbara lead Kara up an elevator in an abandoned clock tower to the top floor. "It's no Fortress of Solitude," she told Kara. "But it is home."

Kara looked around the mostly empty space. One wall was taken up by the reverse face of a clock and another had a bank of computer servers whirring away. "It's certainly warmer," Kara said. "What do you call it?"

Barbara undid the clasps on her cape and draped it across the back of a chair. "The Watchtower."

"The Watchtower," Kara said. "I like the sound of that." She continued her circuit around the room. "Say, you've got some serious computer hardware in this place. I, er, have a friend who would love to spend some time in here."

"But not you? Not interested in technology?" Barbara asked as she sat down in front of a computer.

"It's not that I'm not interested," Kara said. She turned away from the server racks. "Earth's technology is still so primitive compared to what I grew up with on Krypton. You probably think that's awfully elitist of me."

Barbara turned around in her chair to face Kara. "Considering that your people mastered interstellar flight, it's hard for me to take offense at the simple truth."

"And yet despite that, or maybe because of it, we couldn't even save our own planet." Kara looked out clock face and up at the night's sky. "But we aren't here to listen to me mope. We have a crocodile man to find."

Barbara returned her attention to her computer. "About that."

"Do you have an algorithm that scrapes social media looking for references to human crocodiles?" Kara asked. "Or maybe you've hacked the CCTVs around town and are running facial recognition. He's got a very recognizable face after all."

Barbara blinked repeatedly. "No, but those are very good suggestions."

Kara sat down on a stool and kicked out her legs. "Those are both tricks my team has used in the past to track down bad guys."

"Sounds like your team knows what it's doing."

"I could call them, we could pool our resources." Kara started to reach for her radio.

"That won't be necessary," Barbara said. "You're worse than Robin, you know that right?"

Kara pursed her lips together, folded her hands, and placed them in her lap. She continued to swing her legs back and forth as she waited for Batgirl to speak again. The longer the silence continued the more consternated Kara became until she finally leapt off the stool. "Are you going to tell me how you plan to find Croc or not?"

"Batman has placed camera all through the subway and sewers of Gotham," Barbara said. "Most of them broke down soon after they were installed, but hopefully enough still work.

Kara rolled her eyes and settled back onto her stool. "Of course he has."

"We knew where Croc entered the sewer, roughly, and then it's a matter of following the path back to his hideout."

"I'm almost insulted at how obvious that is," Kara said.

"Don't be, your suggestions were very good Especially if you have access to a top secret government agency. The rest of us have to make do with what we have."

"Which is rely on a paranoid crazy man with apparently unlimited resources," Kara said. "Wait, back up, how do you know I work for the government?"

Barbara spun around in her chair. "The radio frequency that transmitter in your ear uses, the one that I hacked into? It's reserved for top secret government agencies. The only reason you'd be using it is if you were working for one of them." She smiled at Kara. "Batman isn't the only detective in Gotham."

"You are so cool," Kara said.

Barbara raised an eyebrow. "Says the lady who can benchpress a jumbo jet."

"But that's just a quirk of my physiology interacting with your local environment, put me on a planet that doesn't have a yellow sun and I'm no stronger than you are."

"That's what he says about your cousin you know," Barbara leaned back in her chair. Personally I think he's jealous, of both of you."

Kara barked out a laugh. "Get of here, him jealous of me?"

"You can fly, you're bulletproof, you can fly, and you have hope. That's not something a lot of people in Gotham have."

Kara slumped in her seat. "Are things in Gotham really that bad? I've heard all the jokes, but I thought they were just that, jokes."

"It's not as bad as everyone else in the country thinks, but it also isn't like we're living in National City." Barbara typed another search string into her keyboard.

"What can I do to help?" Kara asked. "There has to be something."

"Can you create jobs?" Barbara replied. "Because that's what Gotham needs. All you, me, or any other superhero can do is try to hold things together until that happens. Besides you have enough to worry about in your own city. Thank-you for the offer, but the long term problems facing Gotham can't be solved by punching."

"That's, that's a lot to think about," Kara said. "If I understand what you're saying then Bruce Wayne is the greatest hero in Gotham.

"More than, you know," Barbara said.

"If that's true then why don't you dress up like him when you fight crime?"

Barbara laughed. "I'd look ridiculous jumping off of a building in a three piece suit don't you think?"

Kara laughed along with Batgirl. "That wouldn't be very intimidating would it?"

"Not at all, especially when you pair it with a mask, they don't really go together," Barbara said. " Plus custom-tailored Saville Row would cost more to replace than what I'm wearing now." The computer behind her chimed. "And there's our missing crocodile."

"Want me to get him for you?" Kara asked. She hopped off her stool and walked over to Batgirl's computer. "I could be in and out in no time, he'd never know what hit him." She leaned over and stared at the computer screen.

Barbara scratched her chin. "That is tempting but I want to be there as well." She stood up from her computer desk and retrieved her cape. "Let's go catch a crocodile."

"I just have one question," Kara said. "Is he in the subway or the sewer?" She pointed at her nose. "Super smell, we try not to make a big deal of it, but I do not like being around nasty smells."

Batgirl crossed her arms in front of her. "Can you still fight if you're around things that smell bad?"

"What? Yeah of course I can still fight."

"Then the sewer," Barbara walked past Kara and down the stairs.

"Wait, so if I said I couldn't fight you were going to say subway weren't you." Kara called after Batgirl as she followed her out of the Watchtower.

"You are never going to get that muck out of your boots," Kara said to Batgirl as she walked through the ankle-deep water of the sewer. Kara floated along beside her just about the fetid water.

"Your concern is noted," Barbara said. She looked down at a tracker that was leading them through the sewer. "It shouldn't be much farther."

"Good, the sooner we get out of here the better," Kara said. She wrinkled her nose. "It's not that I can't handle being in a gross, nasty sewer, it's just not where I choose to spend my time."

"It's not my first choice either," Barbara said. She held up a hand motioning for Kara to stop. "According to this he should be around the next corner. You remember the plan?"

Kara cracked her knuckled. "Yep, punch him in his stupid face before he has a chance to react."

"Yes, that would be the plan. I'll cover the exit in case he manages to get by you."

"That isn't going to happen this time," Kara said. She stretched out her right arm to loosen up.

"Like I said, I'll cover the exit."

"Be right back," Kara said. She accelerated and shot around the corner. A moment later Barbara watched as Kara flew backwards and up through the roof of the storm sewer and out onto the street above them. She was followed closely by a leaping Killer Croc.

"What is your problem lady?" Croc yelled at Kara. "I'm just trying to mind my own business and you keep busting in to spoil things."

Kara picked herself up out of the ruined car she crashed into. "That's because you're trying to do bad things, like robbing banks. Don't say you're being oppressed when you're robbing banks!" She picked up half the destroyed car and threw it at Croc.

Croc ducked under the car and it smashed into a storefront. "Lady, I rarely get a chance to really cut loose. I'm going to enjoy this."

Before he could charge Kara, Batgirl flew out of the hole in the ground. She held her unclasped cape in one hand and her grapple gun in the other. She released the grapple and jumped over Croc, landing on his back. She threw the cape drape over his head. She grabbed both ends of the cape and pulled it taught.

"Supergirl, now I won't be able to hold this very long!"

Kara pushed herself off of the ground and flew towards Croc. She connected with his jaw with a right hook, the force of the punch lifted him up off of the ground. Batgirl leapt off of Croc as the criminal fell backwards and hit the ground unconscious.

Kara looked down at Croc and over at Batgirl. "Great team up move, gimme five!" She held up her hand.

Barbara sighed then high-fived Kara's outstretched hand. "Okay you're right, that was a good move."

Kara picked up an exposed steel girder and wrapped it around cCroc, binding him. "So now what?"

Barbara reattached her cape. "What do you mean?"

"What do you want to do next? We stopped Killer Croc, and there are a few more hours until the sun's up. I figure there's still time for us to bust some more crime. You know, because we're such a good team."

"You and I have very different definitions of what makes a good team," Barbara said.

Kara's shoulders sagged. "But you did the thing with the cape, and then I punched him. I thought we had the making of a real team going on."

Barbara sighed. "Okay fine, we make a good team. If you want to go on patrol with me you're more than welcome to."

Kara hopped up and down and clapped her hands together. "Oh boy, this will be great." Police sirens could be heard in the distance. "Do you think they're be mad about all the damage?"

"Fortunately for you this is one of the neighborhoods that's being targeted by the new Wayne Enterprises initiative. They'll be rebuilding it all in a month anyway"

"Oh lucky for me I guess," Kara said. " Still feel terrible about that storefront though."

Barbara looked over at the ruined store. "You really mean that don't you?"

"Of course I do. I'm trying to help people, not destroy their livelihood," Kara said.

"That's a rare quality," Barbara drew her grapple gun from her utility belt. She fired a grappling hook at a nearby rooftop up into the night's sky in advance of the arrival of the police.

Kara faced the police with her hands on her hips. "Here's a present for you Detective," Kara said to Montoya as she got out of her patrol car. "I'm sorry about the mess."

Montoya surveyed the wrecked street then looked at Kara "You really do live up to your name."

An older man with reddish hair and mustache dressed in a battered trench coat approached Kara. "Supergirl, I'm Commissioner Gordon, I just want to thank-you for all your help tonight. We can take it from here." He motioned to a team of armored GCPD SWAT police who ran over and picked up the unconscious Croc.

"I'm just happy I was able to help out," Kara said. She pushed herself up off the ground, then flew off after Batgirl.

"How do you do that?" Barbara asked Kara after she landed next to her.

"Do what?" Kara asked.

"The police, they like you. You've barely been in Gotham a day, done more property damage in that time then I've done in a year, and the Jim Gordon thanked you! Me they tolerate, barely."

"Maybe it's because you wear a mask and speak with a scary voice."

Barbara walked over to the waist high ledge that surrounded the roof of the building. "So your secret is to have no secrets?"

"No, I have secrets," Kara said. She joined Batgirl at the edge of the roof. "I'm not the Last Daughter of Krypton all day. Rao that would be exhausting."

"So you do have a secret identity. I've always wondered that about you and, you know."

"My cousin Kal?" Kara asked. Batgirl responded with a nod. "We have day jobs, loved ones, a life outside the cape."

"But without a mask how do you do keep it a secret?"

Kara smiled. "People focus on the cape, and the crest, and honestly it just doesn't occur to anyone that the perfectly ordinary person standing in front of them could possibly be a Kryptonian. Some things are just too fantastic to be believed."

Barbara drummed her fingers on the ledge. "I suppose that makes sense. Though just for the record it wouldn't fool me."

"You might be surprised," Kara said. She tossed her hair with a flick of her head. "I can be a pretty good actor when I want to be."

Barbara sat down on the ledge with her back to the Gotham skyline. "You might think that, but I could figure it out."

Kara's shoulders sagged. "You probably would, but only because you're an amazing detective, and would do some feat of investigative prowess so it wouldn't matter how amazing my acting is."

Barbara's phone chimed and she pulled it out of her utility belt. "That or run facial recognition software on you. Hello Kara Danvers." She held up the phone for Kara to see a picture of her driver's license. "Do those glasses really fool anyone?"

"Give that to me," Kara snatched the phone out of Batgirl's hand before she could react. "You have to destroy this. There can't be any chance the wrong people get their hands on it."

"Relax, I prize my anonymity more than you do so I get it. I'll delete everything I looked up." She pushed a button on her phone. "There, all gone."

"Why would you do that in the first place?"

"It's a bad habit I picked up from Batman, always know more than anyone else in the room. If it makes you feel better, my cowl doesn't have a lead lining."

Kara folded her arms across her chest. "That does make me feel a little better." She sighed. "And I can understand why you try to figure out my secret identity, considering your cowl is lead lined."

"I knew you tried to peak!" Barbara said.

Kara hung her head. "I'm sorry, but it isn't something I always have control over."

"I forgive you if you forgive me," Barbara said.

"But I still don't know who you are, how is that fair?"

Barbara smiled at Kara. "Who said anything about being fair, this is Gotham." She tipped herself backwards over the ledge and off into space. She twisted midair, fired her grapple gun and swung over to the next building. "I thought we were patrolling!" She yelled over to Kara.

Kara chuckled to herself. "I should have seen that coming." She lifted off from the roof and flew after Batgirl.

* * *

Several hours, and three foiled muggings, later Batgirl and Supergirl returned to the Watchtower. Barbara tossed her cape over a nearby chair and partially unzipped her jacket.

"That is just so much more practical," Kara said. "You even have pockets! I wish I had pockets. I need Winn to give me pockets"

"But you can presumably hide most of your costume underneath normal clothes," Barbara said. "I have to carry mine around with me, which can lead to complications in my personal life," she paused. "What little of it there is."

Kara flopped down into one of the few stuffed chairs in the room. "I know right? Who has time to go on dates when there are cities to save. At least you can take nights off. I'm the only one protecting National City."

"Trust me, it really doesn't help," Barbara said. "And we are not doing this." She walked over to the other end of the room and started to tidy up.

Kara followed Batgirl across the room. "Not doing what?"

"Discussing our personal lives like this was some sort of sleepover."

"What, you don't want to have a pillow fight?"

"With you? Hell no," Barbara said.

Kara laughed. "Alex, my sister, adoptive sister, banned me from pillow fights when we were younger."

Barbara held up a finger. "Again no, I'm not looking to make friends here."

"Yes, you are," Kara said. "You don't want to share your personal information with me, and that's fine. You know my secret identity though, and I want to be friends. Not so we can braid our hair and talk about boys, but there aren't many of us around, and we should stick together."

"Women superheroes you mean?" Barbara asked. Kara nodded in response. "It's true there aren't many of us." She looked down at her feet then sighed. She reached up and removed her helmet. "Hello Kara Danvers, I'm Barbara."

A wide smile crossed Kara's face. "Hi Barbara, it's nice to meet you." She pulled Barbara in for a hug.

"I thought I made my position on hugging very clear," Barbara said.

"Don't care, you're getting one. I'm Supergirl, try to stop me."

Barbara chuckled then returned the hug. "I can't argue there. When do you have to leave?"

Kara looked over at a clock sitting on a desk. "My flight back to National City leaves in a few hours."

Barbara pulled back from Kara. "You fly commercial?"

Kara shrugged. "I have to keep up appearances with work."

"That must be frustrating for someone like you," Barbara said. "Since I'm sure you could cover the distance more quickly on your own."

"I couldn't but I don't mind spending time doing ordinary person things," Kara said. "Though standing in line does get old."

"I bet. Thanks for your help, and the talk. You were right, it was nice to have a bit of superhero girl talk."

"You should come visit National City some time. You could visit the DEO and I'd love to show you around."

"I'd like that, I'll be in touch," Barbara said.

"I'll be looking forward to it," Kara said. "Wait, don't you need my contact information...never mind that was a silly question. If you want to know it you'll find my number easily enough. You're the gosh dang Batgirl." She turned and walked out the door.

Kara stood at the front desk of her hotel and had just finished checking out when she felt a hand tap her on her shoulder. She turned around and found herself face to face with. "Bruce Wayne!" She said when she saw the billionaire. "What are you doing here?"

"Excuse me for barging in on you like this Ms. Danvers, but Lucious Fox relayed your conversation with him to me. You didn't hold back your criticism."

"Mr. Wayne, that's...I'm..." Kara said as she felt her face turn red.

Bruce laughed. "Relax Ms. Danvers, you were right. If I really do value the new renovation campaign as much as I claim, then I should have been at the gala last night."

Can I quote you on that?" Kara asked. She rummaged around in the pockets of her jacket for her pen and notebook.

"Why don't I do you one better and give you a sit down interview. One where I lay out what I see as the future of Gotham going forward."

Kara cast her eyes around the hotel lobby. "Now? You want to do an interview now?"

Bruce held up his hands. "No, I'm sure you have a flight back to National City to catch, but call my office and they can set something up." He handed Kara a manilla envelope. "Here are the remarks I was going to make if I had been able to attend the gala, along with how to get in touch with my office. No one else has this, it should make a nice exclusive for CatCo and Snapper Carr."

Kara looked down at the envelope. "Thank-you so much for this Mr. Wayne."

"Don't mention it, and you are welcome in Gotham anytime."

He turned to leave while Kara looked down to open the envelope. As she pulled out the folded pages an index card fell out and fluttered to the ground. Kara bent over to pick it up off the floor. When she turned over the card she found a familiar bat logo embossed on the card. In shock Kara looked up, but Wayne was nowhere to be found. A smile slowly crept across Kara's face. She placed the card back into the envelope and left the hotel.

-The End

* * *

Author's Notes: There's not a whole lot to say here. This was a fun little idea I've been batting around in my head for a while now, and the recent winter hiatus seemed like a good time to write something to fill the void. I have no idea if the CW:DC crew will ever be able to use a member of the Bat family, but if they do I hope it will be either a Batgirl (Babs, Cass, or Steph doesn't matter to me), or Batwoman. At any rate, thanks for reading.

-Sam, 2017-01-21


End file.
